Assistant Director of Residential Life – Retention, Strategic Planning, and Assessment - University of Houston

Organization

Responsible for a major component of Residential Life. Provides leadership to attain the goals and objectives of the department of Student Housing and Residential Life.

1. Responsible for a major component of Residential Life. Provides leadership to attain the goals and objectives of the department of Student Housing and Residential Life.
2. Oversees the delivery of program services. Plans, organizes, schedules and directs activities for Residential Life; coordinates activities with other university departments, contractors.
3. Prepares and implements departmental and program or project budgets; participates in the planning process and policy development.
4. Directs the daily operations and activities of assigned staff, including recruitment, selection, training, development and evaluation.
5. Performs other job-related duties as required.

EEO/AA

SUMMARY:

The Assistant Director of Residential Life – Retention, Strategic Planning, and Assessment is an integral part of Student Housing and Residential Life’s (SHRL’s) leadership team and provides leadership for departmental strategic planning, benchmarking, research, and assessment advancing student success and retention in the residence halls. The Assistant Director supports the vision and leadership for areas of responsibility that ensures that residential life is advancing the SHRL mission, vision, and goals as well as the division's strategic initiatives.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include, but are not limited to, the following:

Retention, Strategic Planning & Assessment

·Leads SHRL’s strategic plan that supports the University of Houston and the Division of Student Affairs strategic plan, and the Housing Master plan.

·Leads the SHRL Strategic and Assessment planning framework, coordinating all areas for in the department; chairs the SHRL Assessment Committee

·Maintains the SHRL progress card which contains data points related to student success initiatives and retention to the University. Assists with the development of the department’s Impact Report.

·Work closely with the Division Assessment Committee and serves on the committee

·Provides oversite for SHRL term and assessment reports--semesterly and annually

·Collaborates with university departments to obtain residential student data (retention, campus-wide surveys, etc.)

·Assists with interpretation of data and develops strategies that supports the SHRL Mission Statement to enhance residents’ experiences

·Maintains departmental assessment instruments; coordinates departmental benchmarking efforts

·Analyzes, interprets, and summarizes results of data collection both quantitative and qualitative, preparing reports showcasing student learning and student success initiatives within various areas of SHRL (student staff, student success, Living Learning Communities, Faculty in Residence, student leadership organizations, Cougar Experience Scholars, residential programming, etc.); leads focus groups

·Collaborates with Marketing & Communications to tell our assessment story via multiple media platforms

·Establishes and measures learning outcomes or program outcomes for programs and services

·Creates assessment plans forr programs and services

·Assists SHRL paraprofessional and professional staff in designing, implementing, and interpreting assessment activities (including survey design and data analysis)

·Knowledgeable of Council for the Advancement of Higher Education Standards (CAS); Association of College and University Housing Officers – International (ACUHO-I) Standards and Ethical Principles

Department, Division, and University Committees

·Coordinates departmental process such as committees, professional development plans, and ePerformance timelines outlined by Human Resources

·Responsible for the overall management of area, including policy development, strategic planning, goal setting and direction of all operational, fiscal, and personnel aspects of the program/service area

·Possess strong strategic thinking skills, with an emphasis on delivering and measuring action plans

·Establish and measure learning outcomes or program outcomes for programs and services

·Strong decision-maker, with transparency in decision-making and management; the ability to make good, consistent, and fair decisions based on fact and data

·Responsible for ensuring continued compliance with all local, state, safety and employment laws and regulations

·Participate in department committees and division service

·Respond to emergencies as needed, such as, crisis and emergency response; facility maintenance; serve on SHRL ride out team for campus emergencies.

·Maintains knowledge of federal, state, and local laws, UH MAPPs and SAMs and general policies and procedures applicable in a higher education residential life setting. Continues to read and study current literature on student learning, student development theory, management theory, and student affairs.

·Establish and maintain collaborative relationships within the department, with other departments, student groups, the university community and stakeholders.

·Work with and support cross-functional teams and to foster teamwork

·Develops strategies in line with the SHRL Mission Statement to enhance residents’ experiences. This includes recommending and initiating solutions to problems or issues in systems procedures, ensuring residents’ needs are continually met in a supportive, caring manner

·Assist with other projects as directed

Departmental Responsibilities

·May serve on 24-hour Back-up Professional on Duty (day, evening, holiday, and weekend) 365 days a year in rotation with other senior staff responding to a variety of emergencies, as needed. On-call response may include, but not limited to: crisis and emergency response; facility maintenance; direction and support for live-in paraprofessional, graduate, and professional staff; and conflict resolution for residents living in on-campus housing facilities students; Serve on SHRL ride out team for campus emergencies

·Maintains knowledge of federal, state, and local laws, UH MAPPs and SAMs and general policies and procedures applicable in a higher education residential life setting. Continues to read and study current literature on student learning, student development theory, management theory, and student affairs.

·Establishes and maintains collaborative relationships within the department, with other departments, student groups, the university community and stakeholders.

·Actively participates in departmental outreach activities, programming, and staff/student training

·The ability to work with and support cross-functional teams and to foster teamwork

·Develops strategies in line with the SHRL Mission Statement to enhance residents’ experiences. This includes recommending and initiating solutions to problems or issues in systems procedures, ensuring residents’ needs are continually met in a supportive, caring manner

·Assists SHRL staff members (individuals and team) to develop and build skills necessary to accomplish goals and priorities of the department

·Serves on department committees; represent the department on division and university committees

·Assists with other projects as directed

Other duties or projects as assigned as appropriate to rank and departmental mission.

Essential Position: 
This position has been designated as an essential position based on the duties of the job and the functions performed. Positions that are designated as such are required to report to work/remain at work even if classes are cancelled, and the campus is working on limited operations in an emergency.

Bachelors and 5 years experience

Requires a thorough understanding of both theoretical and practical aspects of an analytical, technical or professional discipline; or the basic knowledge of more than one professional discipline. Knowledge of the discipline is normally obtained through a formal, directly job-related 4 year degree from a college or university or an equivalent in-depth specialized training program that is directly related to the type of work being performed. Requires a minimum of five (5) years of directly job-related experience.

Additional Job Posting Information: 
- Department is willing to accept education in lieu of experience. 

Employee Status

Job Posting